Trump slams US attorney Pirro for dropping Reflecting Pool charges, insists damage was vandalism

The reversal

On Friday, federal prosecutors moved to dismiss the felony vandalism charge against David Hearn, a 67-year-old former Olympic canoeist. In a 20-page court filing, US Attorney Jeanine Pirro said newly obtained documents from the Interior Department showed the damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was the result of a rushed and "botched" installation by contractors, not deliberate sabotage. The filing noted that damage appeared throughout the pool, including in the middle where a vandal would be unlikely to strike, and that the pool's lining had peeled repeatedly even during the renovation. Pirro, a Trump appointee, wrote that "given all of this newly discovered information, it is difficult to attribute the widespread damage to the Reflecting Pool to vandalism, let alone to establish that fact beyond a reasonable doubt."

Trump's reaction

President Trump responded on Saturday with a series of Truth Social posts rejecting his own Justice Department's conclusion. "I disagree 100% with Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, on the Reflecting Pool," he wrote. "I don't know what she was thinking? To me, it was a pure case of VANDALISM." He acknowledged "some contractor difficulty" but insisted "the major damage was caused by VANDALS!" Trump also posted a video of an unidentified person reaching into the pool and a photograph of the numbers "86 47" etched into the National Mall lawn, which some interpreted as a call to remove the 47th president. He provided no new evidence of vandalism.

I disagree 100% with Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, on the Reflecting Pool. I don't know what she was thinking? To me, it was a pure case of VANDALISM.

The renovation and its problems

The Reflecting Pool renovation was a personal priority for Trump, who sought to have the landmark coated in "American flag blue" for the nation's 250th birthday celebration on July 4. The administration awarded two no-bid contracts worth more than $16 million between them: a $14.7 million deal to Atlantic Industrial Coatings, a Virginia firm that had never held a federal contract but had worked on a Trump golf club pool, and a $1.7 million cleaning and filtration contract to Greenwater Services of Ohio, whose owner is a Trump donor and Mar-a-Lago neighbour. The National Park Service bypassed competitive bidding by invoking a statutory exemption for unusual and compelling urgency, a decision that has drawn congressional questions, freedom of information requests and a lawsuit. Work was completed on June 6, but within two weeks the blue paint began peeling and algae blooms turned the water green. Trump initially blamed "vandals," alleging they slashed the lining with knives and dumped fertilizer. At least four people were charged, including Hearn, who faced up to 10 years in prison.

Hearn's arrest and the case's collapse

Hearn was arrested on June 19 after he reached into the pool to retrieve a piece of loose lining during a bike ride. Pirro announced the indictment on July 2, calling the pool "sacred" government property and promising to prove Hearn "willfully destroyed property." But the Interior Department later provided documents showing the lining had failed in multiple locations during installation, and prosecutors concluded the evidence could not support a vandalism charge. Hearn's legal team said the case "should never have been brought" and that the dismissal "does not undo the abuse of government power in the arrest and prosecution of a patriotic American who did nothing wrong." They are weighing further legal remedies and demanded an apology.

Today's dismissal does not undo the government's abuse of power in the arrest and prosecution of a patriotic American who did nothing wrong.

Political fallout

The episode is a rare public rupture between Trump and a loyalist he appointed. Pirro, a former Fox News host and friend of Trump since the 1980s, did not directly criticize the president in her filing, instead faulting the Interior Department for providing "less than fulsome information." But her conclusion contradicted Trump's repeated claims of vandalism, and the president's angry response underscored his unwillingness to accept the findings. The Reflecting Pool remains empty and closed to the public, a symbol of a renovation whose contracts run to more than $16 million and which has become a political flashpoint.